This is a collection of news about border issues, particularly those seen from Arizona and regarding the right to keep and bear arms. Sources often include Mexican media. It's often interesting to see how different the view is from the south.
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McALLEN — The U.S. Marshals Service announced the capture of a murder suspect from El Salvador.

Julio Cesar Arias Castillo, 29, is wanted in Houston in connection with the murder of his wife and a 32-year-old man in June 2010.

On Dec. 8, U.S. Marshals received information that Arias had just crossed into the U.S from Mexico. U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested Arias near Rio Grande City earlier in the week and then turned him over to the Marshals service. Arias is facing immigration charges and then will be taken to Harris County to face state charges.

The state attorney general's office reported that the intervention of the Mexican Army Military Zone 16, caught four men and a teenage girl, alleged members of a cell of the "Knights Templar", who was in possession of an arsenal.

LEON, Guanajuato (AP) The Attorney General of the State (PGJE), in coordination with the Mexican Army, who arrested the chief of the criminal group "Knights Templars" in this municipality.

To evade justice, the leader of this criminal organization boasted three different identities.

The head of the PGJE, Aguirre Carlos Zamarripa, it is reported that Heredia Alejandro Medina, alias "the Cape" and / or "Lobo", 35 years old, who also called himself Mariano Gomez Navarro and / or Ramiro Conejo Rodriguez, a native of Morelia, Michoacan, who headed the cell dedicated to carry out kidnappings and killings.

Along with him were arrested Trevino Alfredo Rosales, alias "El Chaco", 28, Orlando Solorio Vasquez and / or Juan Luis Lopez Medina, alias "caliche" of 25, Roberto Carlos Sánchez Calderón, the "Sisi" 26, and a adolescent of 16 years.

Guadalupe - the Mexican Army in the community of Tayahua secured a tactical equipment and a arsenal, consisting of four guns and a grenade launcher, also arrest a person, according to the Military Zone XI.

In a press release sent yesterday, the Ministry of National Defense (SEDENA) reported that the incident took place during a patrol in that community Zacatecas, after a citizen complaint about the presence of armed persons.

The route taken was found two individuals carrying guns in vigilance, who, realizing military presence began to flee on foot, making the arrest of one of them, and the assurance of armaments.

Despite regular assurances by Tamaulipas state officials that violence is down, two grenade attacks, a chase and a firefight were reported in the state capital of Ciudad Victoria on Friday, while several shootouts were reported in Reynosa.

Sources outside law enforcement with direct knowledge said the Reynosa clashes stemmed from Gulf Cartel infighting.

THE BORDERIn Reynosa, the first clashes were reported Friday shortly after 8 p.m. along Hidalgo and Del Maestro boulevards. Groups of gunmen clashed and chased each other, said a Mexican law enforcement official. Soon after, the Mexican military responded to various areas, searching for and clashing with the gunmen. Clashes were reported in various neighborhoods, including Narciso Mendoza, Campanario and Balcones. Casualty reports were not readily available for Reynosa.

Sources outside law enforcement but with direct knowledge said the clash in Reynosa is related to the ongoing struggle between the two factions of the Gulf Cartel. Since September, the Metros, which control Reynosa, have been trying to eradicate the Rojos, who are believed to be behind the death of Samuel "Metro 3" Flores Borrego, the former plaza boss of Reynosa. The struggle has fomented disarray in the organization that resulted in various loads of narcotics being stolen from the organization. The Metros — the leading faction — hired a prison gang in the U.S. to carry out a recovery operation, which led to a botched abduction and police shooting in late October. As the shots were exchanged, one alleged kidnapper was killed and an Hidalgo County sheriff's deputy was wounded.

THE CAPITAL

In Ciudad Victoria, which lies some 200 miles south of McAllen, a grenade was thrown Friday as a distraction outside the state prison while an organized crime group hoisted a narco-banner, according to information released by the Tamaulipas state government. The same tactic was used shortly thereafter, when another grenade was thrown outside a casino in the Campestre area, a ritzy part of town. As authorities moved to remove the banners, they clashed with members of organized crime, leading to a chase and a shootout. No injuries were reported in any of the incidents.